The Ornery Wild Hogs of Huckleberry Island Off the Shores of Pelham at the Close of the Civil War

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The lore of Huckleberry Island off the shores of Pelham includes the story of a very odd incident that involved ornery hogs on the island at the close of the Civil War.  Indeed, a number of newspaper articles make brief, passing references to the incident without much detail -- only enough information to pique interest in the curious incident.  One article published years later to tout Colonel Delancey Kane's "Pelham Coach" told the story with a little more detail.  

As I have written before, throughout the Civil War there was a large military installation on David's Island off the shores of New Rochelle and Pelham.  During the war an enterprising entrepreneur moved onto nearby Huckleberry Island and raised a large number of hogs that he sold to the military authorities and troops on Davids Island.  

For a time the venture was successful, though difficult since the Huckleberry Island did not have the means to support the hogs.  The entrepreneur had to transport their food from the mainland.  

In this manner the entrepreneur scratched out a living for several years.  Soon, however, his fortunes turned.  The Union won the war and the number of troops on nearby David's Island declined precipitously.  

At the close of the war, the entrepreneur had a "large drove of hogs" on the island, but no one to whom to sell them.  Moreover, without ongoing sales to the military, he lacked the money to feed the poor beasts.

Soon the drove of hogs grew thin, desperately hungry, and ornery.  They ran wild all over Huckleberry Island.  

One morning, wild with hunger, the hogs attacked their owner.  At first they drove him into his house.  Soon they battered down the door.  Finally, they chased their owner until he climbed onto the roof of the house to save his life.  The hogs reportedly "surrounded the building and kept him there for three days."

Finally, the pigs' "wildness and squealing" attracted the attention of residents along the shore.  The residents made it to Huckleberry Island and saved the entrepreneur whose pig-raising days were over. . . .

To learn more about the histories of Huckleberry Island and David's Island, see, e.g.:

Wed., Feb. 03, 2016:  Pelham Women Assisted Union Troops and Confederate Prisoners on David's Island During the Civil War.

Wed., Oct. 21, 2015:  Ministering to Troops on Hart and Davids Islands During and Shortly After the Civil War.

Fri., Jun. 3, 2005:  Davids' Island Off the Coast of Pelham Manor During the Civil War.

Fri., Dec. 04, 2015:  Early Celebrations of the Huckleberry Indians of the New York Athletic Club.

Thu., Jun. 08, 2017:  More 19th Century Reports of Captain Kidd's Treasure Buried Off Pelham Shores.

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Below is the text of an article published in 1876 that includes a brief description of the incident that forms the basis for today's Historic Pelham article.  The text is followed by a citation and link to its source.

"COL. KANE'S COACH ROUTE.
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Extending a Pleasant Drive to Historical Grounds.

Col. Delancey Kane mounted the box of his canary-colored coach at 7:30 yesterday morning, after every seat was filled with passengers, on the lawn in front of the Neptune House, New Rochelle, and started on the new route for his four-in-hand to the Hotel Brunswick.  The time table now reads:  'On and after July 5 the New Rochelle and Pelham coach will make a single trip daily (Sundays excepted), between New York and New Rochelle, every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at 7:30 A. M., will arrive at the Hotel Brunswick at 9:30 A. M.; and leaving the Brunswick every Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday at 4:45 P. M., will arrive at the Neptune House, New Rochelle, at 6:45 P. M.'

Three changes of horses are made, in Mott Haven, Union Port, and Pelham Bridge.  The fare each way is $2, with a proportionately less amount to intermediate stations.  A pleasant feature will be in leaving New York on Saturday afternoon, remaining over Sunday in New Rochelle and returning on Monday morning in time for business.

The extended route abounds in historical and local interest.  The Neptune House is on a wooded island facing New Rochelle Bay.  In the distance the white caps of Long Island Sound are seen as they dash on the shores of several islands that obstruct the passage way to the bay.  The house was built by Philip Rhinelander Underhill, a descendant of the Rhinelander who fled to this country with the Huguenots from La Rochelle, France, and landed on Davenport's neck in 1689.  The neck is across the bay to the left of the hotel.  Facing the hotel is Locust Island, a secluded spot, where Edgar A. Poe spent some time when he lived in Fordham.  Further out inn the sound is David's Island, a garrison post during the civil war, and nearby is Huckleberry Island, which tradition gives as a rendezvous for Captain Kidd.  The surface of the island has been dug over several times by the superstitious colored people of New Rochelle in search of the pirate's treasure.  It was last inhabited by a man who speculated in hogs for the garrison on David's Island.  At the close of the war he had a large drove of hogs, but no food for them.  They grew thin, and ran almost wild over the island.  One morning the hogs attacked the man, drove him into the house, battered down the door, and chased him to the roof.  The hogs surrounded the building and kept him there for three days.  Their wildness and squealing attracted persons from the main shore, and the speculator was rescued.

A hedged roadway leads from the rear of the Neptune House to a stone bridge connecting with the main land.  A short distance from the shore Col. Kane's route takes the road along the shore to Pelham Bridge.  On either side the roadway is lined with costly stone mansions, surrounded by large fields and beautiful lawns.  The word Pelham is of uncertain origin.  New Rochelle was formerly a part of Pelham Manor.

The tract of land on the sound shore was originally included in the grant by the Indians in 1640 to the Dutch West India Company.  Sir Richard Nicolls, Governor of the province granted it to Thomas Pell, gentleman, Oct. 6, 1656, and he, in 1669, granted it to John Pell, commonly called Lord Pell, the first Judge that sat in Westchester county.  The tract extended for six miles along the coast, and about eight miles into the interior.  The settlement of the Huguenots founded New Rochelle.  The remainder of the tract was sometimes called Pell Hamlet, but local historians say that Pelham is derived from Pel (remote) and Ham (mansion).  It is one of the most beautiful suburbs of New York.  The roadway, after crossing the stone bridge, ascends a rocky ridge, and from there is a view across the Sound to Long Island.  Descending the hill, Sheffield Island (sometimes called Emmet's Island) is seen.  It is connected by a rustic bridge with the mainland.  A small stone mansion, built in a grove of tall elm trees, is occupied by Mr. Wm. Hoyt, a New York merchant, whose wife is a daughter of Chief Justice Chase, and was formerly tenanted by Wm. H. Leroy (brother-in-law of Daniel Webster), who married the daughter of Thomas Addis Emmet.  On the west side of the road is a large mansion, the residence of the family of Judge Robert Emmet, and the scene of a daring raid by the masked burglars two years ago.

A turn in the road brings the coach riders in sight of Col. Kane's first resting place, 'The Priory.'  It is an immense stone mansion; two large square turrets rise from either end, the roofs are quaint, and the outbuildings are old style.  This was the residence of the Rev. Robt. Bolton, an Episcopal minister.  It is on land that was granted to the Church of England.  The walls of the mansion are hung with family pictures by Etty, of the Royal Academy.  An original portrait of Bunyan is among them.  The library contains the original Italian edition of Pisanese, collected by Napoleon I., and bearing his initial, surmounted by the imperial crown.  There is also a copy of Macklin's Bible, printed in six royal quarto volumes, a copy of Elliot's Indian Testament, said to be the first work 'written and published in the present United States.'  There is a valuable cabinet of coins and autographs, the oldest of which is that of Henry VII, and Elizabeth, Queen Mary, and Oliver and Richard Cromwell.

'The Priory' is used as a young ladies' seminary, conducted by Miss N. Bolton.  A wide terrace surrounds the house, and the gardens are laid out in elaborate designs.  The walks lead to several natural curiosities, among them a 'rocking stone,' of full twenty tons in weight, so nicely poised that 'a stripling's arm can sway a mass no host could move.'

Col. Kane's route then passes through a stretch of forest trees, and Hunter's Island seen in the distance, and the residence of Dr. R. L. Morris, grandson of Robert Morris, one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence.  The last mansion on the Pelham road before reaching Bartow's, is occupied by Mrs. Bartow in the midst of over 200 acres of fields and meadow lands.

At Bartow the road leads to Pelham Bridge, and at Arcularius Hotel the coach route extends over the same boulevard that Col. Kane has driven for the past few months."

Source:  COL. KANE'S COACH ROUTE -- Extending a Pleasant Drive to Historical Grounds, The Sun [NY, NY], Jul. 6, 1876, Vol. XLIII, No. 297, p. 1, col. 2.

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Pelham Manor's Most Famous Cow

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The little village of Pelham Manor is famous for many things.  It is world famous for the "Pelham Manor Trolley" that inspired cartoonist Fontaine Fox to create his tremendously successful comic strip "Toonerville Folks" that centered around the "Toonerville Trolley" and ran in syndication throughout the nation for about forty years.  It is famous as the site of the New York Athletic Club's Travers Island facility.  It is famous as the destination of Col. Delancey Kane's "Pelham Coach" once known as the "Tally Ho."  Indeed, Pelham Manor is famous for many more things including . . . a cow.

As late as the 1920s, Pelham Manor was still rural enough with undeveloped areas to permit some village residents to keep livestock and fowl including cows and chickens.  One such resident was E. H. Laing who kept a Jersey milk cow on his property in Pelham Manor.  Laing's Jersey cow, however, was a nomadic beast that loved nothing more than to break free and roam the Pelhams to the consternation of the Pelham Manor police, village residents, and Laing's neighbors.

Laing's cow first became famous when it broke free and wandered the village until it came upon an unidentified Pelham Manor policeman who reportedly was taking a little nap.  The cow couldn't resist showing a little affection and "kissed" the officer with a wet, slurpy lick, awakening him from a sound slumber.  (The news account of the incident was quick to question the veracity of the story since, as it said, "it is denied that the cops in the Manor ever sleep.")

Villagers became annoyed with the bovine because its long, low "mooings" were more like an extended honk.  The sound was easily mistaken for the honk of the village fire alarm when heard from a distance.   

E. H. Laing, it seems, bought the Jersey cow to ensure an uninterrupted supply of milk for his family.  As the local newspaper reported, in Pelham the "supply of milk is all right but not without trouble."  Laing did not fence his property or coral the beast.  Instead, he drove a massive stake into the ground and tied a hitching rope to the cow to keep it from wandering.

The wily bovine seems always to have consider the grass to be greener everywhere else, however.  The cow simply tugged and tugged to uproot the stake virtually at will and meandered however it wished.  

As complaints mounted, Laing added a second stake that was much heavier and larger than the first.  He then fastened his Jersey cow to both stakes with a hitching rope.   

Laing's Jersey cow, however, was not to be denied the greener grass or the delicious cud that followed each such meal.  Early one morning, the cow tugged and tugged until it uprooted both stakes and wandered onto a neighbor's yard where the grass seemed greener.  As the heavy cow grazed, its hooves sank deeply into the neighbor's lawn.  As it moved about the property, the heavy stake that it dragged behind it had a "turf-uprooting effect" that destroyed much of the lawn.  By the time the cow's antics had been discovered, the neighbor's lawn was "well nigh ruined."

Laing and his neighbor had some "discussions" about the matter.  In fact, those discussions were "heated" with the neighbor threatening Laing with a lawsuit.  Pelham Manor's most famous -- or, perhaps, infamous -- cow paid no mind to those discussions, however.  Instead, according to The Pelham Sun, it simply kept "giving milk and trouble daily."

Gone, of course, are the days when Pelham Manor residents kept livestock and fowl.  It may be surprising to learn, however, that those days were gone by the early 1930s.  Indeed, in 1931, one Pelham Manor resident wrote wistfully:

:Well, well, those robust days are over!  Gone from our midst are Mr. Laing's cow, which blocked traffic on Pelhamdale avenue, Mr. Cole's pigs and sheep, gone are chickens, goats; going are cats and pigeons."  

Source:  Blymer, Mary Hall, Overlooking The Sound In 1910, The Pelham Sun, Apr. 17, 1931, p. 13, cols. 1-2.  

Those robust days may be gone.  They are not, however, forgotten.  Instead, they provide a basis for amusing and quaint stories regarding the history of the Village of Pelham Manor during quaint times.

"Jersey Cow" by Anthony Forster.

NOTE:  Click on Image to Enlarge.

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Amusing stories such as that of E. H. Laing's Jersey cow serve as quaint reminders of a time not so long ago when large portions of Pelham retained a rural flavor despite Pelham's borders with the City of New York, the City of New Rochelle, and the City of Mount Vernon.  Today's posting is based on the article transcribed below that is followed by a citation and link to its source.  

"Cow Wanders Away; Court Action Coming

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Laing Bovine Who Is Reported to Have Kissed a Cop May Appear In Court Action

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For some tie past the nomadic habits of a jersey cow in Pelham Manor have been the subject of much table talk.  The cow is the property of Edward H. Laing (of course, you've heard him or heard of him or know him) and its peregrinations have provided several ridiculous situations.  It is reported to have kissed a sleeping cop, but it is denied that the cops in the Manor ever sleep.  Its vocal 'mooings' have been mistaken for the honk of the fire alarm, so 'tis said, and it has made several other demonstrations of its irresponsible character and its disregard for the rights of others, in most disconcerting places.  

E. H. Laing was a notable Pelham Manor resident who was active in community affairs.  He served for a time as Treasurer of the Pelham Manor Taxpayers Association, a taxpayers' advocacy group in the village.  He was a member of the Men's Club of Pelham.  

Laing, it is stated, purchased the cow so that the Laing family could obtain a plentiful supply of milk without trouble.  The supply of milk is all right but not without trouble.  No matter how firmly staked to its hitching rope, the bovine seems able to uproot the stake and meander wherever it wills.

A while ago it started off, despite the additional heavy stake to which it was attached, and dragging the aforesaid stake to the lawn of a neighbor where it browsed in the early hours of the morn.  The neighbor was not satisfied with the new method of cropping the lawn, for the hoof prints of the Jersey cow and the turf-uprooting effect of the heavy stake which the cow dragged along with it, well nigh ruined the lawn.  There were heated discussions and it is rumored that court action will follow.  But of that more anon.  The cow is still giving milk and trouble daily."

Source:  Cow Wanders Away; Court Action Coming -- Laing Bovine Who Is Reported to Have Kissed a Cop May Appear In Court Action, The Pelham Sun, Jun. 30, 1922, p. 10, col. 2.

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Consolidation Involving Pelham Has Been Discussed Since at Least 1824

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During the mid-1970s, the Village of Pelham and the Village of North Pelham were consolidated to form today's Village of Pelham.  From the 1920s to the present, residents of Pelham have debated the pros and cons of consolidating various of the villages.  Others have been debating for decades whether to consolidate or annex into greater New York City various of the suburban governmental units including Pelham.  Interestingly, it seems that such considerations were being proposed as early as 1824.

The excerpt below if from the Gazetteer of the State of New-York published in 1824.  In it, the author of the entry for Pelham indicates that "it would be well, perhaps," to consider consolidating some of the small Towns in the area including the Town of Pelham.

"PELHAM, a small Township of Westchester County, on the East river, or Long-Island Sound, 18 miles from New-York, and 9 S. of White Plains; bounded E. by New-Rochelle, W. by East-Chester, S. by the Sound, and including several small but valuable islands.  On the N. it terminates in a point.  It is washed on the W. by East-Chester, or Hutchinson's, or Hutchins' creek, and like the other towns of this County, is confined to a very small area.  The land is very stony, but productive, and the surface has little diversity.  The turnpike toward Boston, from New-York, leads across this town, and there are some handsome country seats along the Sound.  Pell's Point is at the S. end, and the islands are Minneford's or City Island, Hart's Island, and High Island.  Rodman's Neck and Pell's Point are the same.  Population, 283; 50 farmers and 1 mechanic; no slaves; 31 free blacks; taxable property $164764; 1 school district; school kept 5 months in 12; $50; 65; 35; electors, 48; 2947 acres of improved land; 254 cattle, 46 horses, 212 sheep; 182 yards of cloth made in the domestic way.  In some of the freaks of our legislation, it would be well, perhaps, to consolidate some of these little towns, though it might diminish the number of those little-great-men, who derive all their importance from an office.  But -- 'the more teats the more puppies,' a fact perfectly understood by all the managers, as well on the smaller as on the greater scale, and division and subdivision are the order of the day.  So many alterations have already been made, in the boundaries of Counties and Towns, so many have been subdivided, and new ones erected, even since the 2 late Censuses, of 1820 and 1821, that in very many instances we have to substitute guessing for enumeration, while yet the Census is hardly dry from the press.

See Civil Divisions.
S.M., J.W., S.D."

Source:  Spafford, Horatio Gates, A Gazetteer of the State of New-York:  Embracing an Ample Survey and Description of its Counties, Towns, Cities, Villages, Canals, Mountains, Lakes, Rivers, Creeks, and Natural Topography, p. 406 (Albany, NY:  B.D. Packard, 1824).

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